Clarabella
by Jenna Cassie Herdz
Summary: Well, I got a baby crazy for me. Yeah, I got a baby won't let me be. Who, baby baby, Clarabella. Baby baby, Clarabella...Max has a girl! Max/OC
1. Penny Lane

**A/N:** Welcome to my Across the Universe fanfic! i tried to stay trure to the formet of the movie with the songs and as for the songs, i'm using songs that were NOT used in the movie. the titles will be the chapter titles. i don't own the Beatles...doi! and i don't own Across the Universe.

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Chapter 1: Penny Lane

_She loves you, yeah, yeah, yeah  
__She loves you, yeah, yeah, yeah_

Max smiled as Lucy ran from her platform and into Jude's arms. His best friend and his sister were happy, that's all that mattered. He turned to see Sadie and JoJo singing their hearts out into the microphone, also in as much love as his sister and friend. He shrugged and turned back to the door leading downstairs.

"Everybody's got somebody," he smirked to himself and headed toward the stairs. "And I gotta get back to work."

"Hey, Max!"

He stopped and spun around to see Jude running toward him, Lucy in tow.

"Where ye goin'? The party's only starting!"

"I gotta get back to work," he replied with a shrug. "I'll see you guys later, ok?"

"Come on," Lucy urged, walking toward her brother and pulling on his arm back toward the makeshift stage. "You can work later!"

"People still need to get places," Max smirked and pulled Lucy toward him to kiss her on her head and nodded at Jude. "See you back at the apartment, yeah?"

"Yeah," Jude nodded back, pulling Lucy under his arm. "Don't work to hard, eh?"

Max waved him off as he headed toward the stairs again. He hurried his way down the stairs till he came to the front door of the building and had to shove his way past the line of cops that was keeping the crowd of people in the street from going _in_. He shoved past the people, too to get to his cab and when he got there he frowned in wonder.

Everyone was paying attention to what was going on at the top of the building, their heads up and staring, except for one girl. She was leaning on the hood of his cab, examining her nails and unfazed by anything going on around her. She had strawberry red, curly hair that fell to her elbows, pulled back from her face by a pair of pins on top of her head and amber brown eyes under thick lashes above pouting pink lips.

Max had frozen a few feet from the cab when he had seen her, and he was still frowning in puzzlement when she looked up at him.

"Is this your cab?" she asked, pointing a thumb at the car she sat on. All Max could do was nod.

"Groovy," she smiled and stood tall. "If you can get through this crowd without a problem, I need to get somewhere."

She opened the back door to the cab and let herself in. Max was still frozen where he stood, but once he registered her words he shook off his shock and hurried to get into the cab. Once inside he turned to her and asked, "Where to?"

"Get outta this crowd and I'll tell you," she smirked, pulling a mirror from the small handbag she was carrying.

"Alright," he nodded and turned back to start the car and laid in on his horn. "Outta the way!" He waved his arms dramatically as he slowly rolled forward and people moved as much as they could out of the way. "Come on! Jeez, these guys are slower than molasses out here!"

Once out of the crowd he turned back to her and she leaned forward with a smirk as she said, "Penny Lane, please?"

"Penny Lane it is," Max nodded and turned to drive through the streets. As he drove, he couldn't help but look at her every once in a while through his rear view mirror. He'd never seen anybody so pretty.

"_She's not prettier than Lucy_," he admitted. "_But close_." His hands gripped the steering wheel nervously as he bit his lip, still glancing back at her. "_Say something!_"

"I'm Max, by the way," he finally blurted. "What's _your_ name?"

"Clarabella," she replied, examining her reflection her little mirror.

"Clarabella," Max echoed, nodding. "That's not a name you hear every day." He sneered at his own comment, gazing out the window in disgust when he turned down another street.

"So," he tried again. "What's on Penny Lane, if you don't mind me asking?"

"My dad's place," she replied, snapping her mirror shut and stuffing it back into her little bag. "You can just drop me off in front of the building. I'll tell you when to stop."

"Ok," Max replied. A silence filled the air again and he was kicking himself, mentally every second. Finally, shifting in his weight a bit, he said, "Ya know, I love going down Penny Lane."

"_What are you doing?_" he asked himself.

"Really?" Clarabella humored, looking at her nails again and Max glanced at her again.

"Yeah," he smiled.

"_Stop_," he told himself. "_Stop now before you embarrass yourself_."

"Why?" Clarabella asked and Max smiled, ignoring his own warnings.

_In Penny Lane there is a barber showing photographs  
__Of every head he's had the pleasure to know  
__And all the people that come and go  
__Stop and say hello_

Max glanced into the rearview mirror and saw Clarabella roll her eyes, but he only shrugged.

_On the corner is a banker with a motorcar  
The little children laugh at him behind his back  
And the banker never wears a mack  
In the pouring rain, very strange  
__Penny Lane is in my ears and in my eyes  
There beneath the blue suburban skies  
I sit, and meanwhile back  
__In Penny Lane there is a fireman with an hourglass  
And in his pocket is a portrait of the queen  
He likes to keep his fire engine clean  
It's a clean machine_

Max turned onto Penny Lane, glancing through his mirror again at her and started to smile when he noticed her smiling at him. She suddenly sat forward and so that she was nearly leaning on his shoulder and gazing out the windshield.

_Penny Lane is in my ears and in my eyes  
A four of fish and finger pies  
In summer, meanwhile back  
Behind the shelter in the middle of a roundabout  
The pretty nurse is selling poppies from a tray  
And though she feels as if she's in a play  
She is anyway_

Max couldn't help but grin as she started pointing out her own things that she liked about Penny Lane.

_In Penny Lane the barber shaves another customer  
We see the banker sitting waiting for a trim  
And then the fireman rushes in  
From the pouring rain, very strange  
Penny lane is in my ears and in my eyes  
There beneath the blue suburban skies  
I sit, and meanwhile back  
Penny lane is in my ears and in my eyes  
There beneath the blue suburban skies  
Penny Lane_

She smiled and gazed out of the window and suddenly shot straight up. "Stop!"

Max slammed on the breaks right in front of an apartment building and they both slammed forward then slammed back as the cab screeched to a stop.

"Sorry," she smiled sweetly when he turned to her.

"It's alright," he shrugged as she rummaged through her little handbag.

"I hope this is enough," she said, handing him some money. Max didn't even bother to count it, he was still smiling at her.

"That's fine," he replied and Clarabella chuckled at the fact that he wasn't even looking at the cash she had just placed in his hand.

"Well, see ya round, Max," she smiled and got out of the cab.

Max leaned toward the passenger window to watch her and call, "Yeah! See ya round!"

She turned and waved before disappearing into the building. He sat up and grasped the steering wheel with a smile he couldn't get rid of.

"Clarabella," he sighed. "She was wicked cute." He started driving again, a grin on his face. "I hope I see her again."

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A/N:

well, how'd i do? i no it's kinda corny, but i thought it worked out ok. i'm worried i pulled some OOC with Max, so please, tell me if i did, because i like being true to the characters. reviews? 


	2. A Taste of Honey

_**Chapter 2: A Taste of Honey**_

Max flopped onto the couch with an exhausted sigh and shoved his hat over his eyes then crossed his arms over his chest. A hand shaking his knee startled him and he lifted his hat from his eyes to see who was disturbing him.

"Come on, hun!" Sadie smiled, decked out in her finest wears and ready to party. "We gotta be at the bar in a half hour and you're my ride."

"Damn, Sadie, when are you gonna quit doing these bars?" Max groaned, forcing himself to get back up.

"When they shut them all down, man," she replied. "Now get a move on! I'm meeting a friend there, too. She's performing after me."

"How could anyone _dare_ to follow you?" Max smiled and Sadie patted his cheek with her own smile.

"Don't think I haven't forgotten you still owe me half the months rent," she smiled then turned to JoJo who was coming out of their room, Prudence close behind from her room. "Come on, baby."

"Shit," Max muttered about his rent as he followed Sadie and JoJo out of the apartment. "Hey, where's Jude and Lucy?"

"At their old place," JoJo replied. "Jude said they'd meet us there."

The three arrived at the bar at eight and before they even got in they met Jude and Lucy. Lucy hugged her brother furiously and Jude gave him a slap on the arm as they all entered.

"How was work?" Lucy asked Max.

"It's been a hard day's night," he replied and they all waved to Sadie, JoJo and Prudence as they headed to set up their stuff on stage. The three found a booth closest to the stage and sat, ordering drinks to pass the time.

"Well you guys seem happy," Max smiled, raising his glass at the couple sitting across from him.

"We are," Jude smiled and looked down at Lucy, lovingly.

"I still think she could do better," Max smirked, jokingly and the two rolled their eyes.

"Hey, what happened to that girl you were dating?" Lucy wondered, changing the subject.

"Which girl?" Max asked after taking a swig of his beer.

"Lizzy, something," Lucy replied.

"Oh," Max replied in a hollow voice then waved it off. "Yeah, she wasn't working."

"Why not?" Jude asked.

"She's just not my type," Max shrugged.

"I thought _all_ girls were your type, eh?" Jude smirked and Max kicked him under the table.

"And now, the one you've been waiting for…Sadie!"

The bar burst into loud yells as the three in the booth turned around to see Sadie, JoJo and Prudence on stage.

_Last night I said these words to my love  
I know you never even try, love  
C'mon (C'mon), c'mon (C'mon), c'mon (C'mon), c'mon (C'mon)  
Please please me, whoa yeah, like I please you_

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"Sadie, that was great!" Lucy grinned as the band came back from their performance and scooted into the booth.

"Yeah, I think you guys have gotten better since I've been away," Jude complimented.

"Thanks, guys," Sadie smiled.

"So where's this friend of yours?" Max wondered as Prudence sat next to him.

"She should be up any minute," Sadie replied, looking up at the dark stage. Max noticed a dark figure go up to the microphone and shifted to be comfortable to watch.

_A taste of honey  
__Tasting much sweeter..._

The lights suddenly came up on stage and Max would have fallen out of his chair if Prudence hadn't been on the edge of the booth.

_...than wine_

The girl on stage was smiling, confidently, her strawberry hair pinned back and up to keep it out of her amber brown eyes completely.

"Clarabella," Max breathed and Sadie looked at him in confusion but decided to ask him how he knew her later.

_I dream of your first kiss and then  
__I feel upon my lips again  
A taste of honey  
Tasting much sweeter than wine_

Clarabella was looking around the audience and when she caught sight of Max she stared at him with wide eyes, her confident smirk dropping and for a moment, she forgot where she was. She shook it off and continued as Max stared at her, slack jawed and wide eyed himself.

_I will return, yes I will return  
I'll come back for the honey and you_

Prudence frowned at Max as he just continued staring and when she looked at Lucy and Jude who frowned in question at her she only shrugged. It was like he'd been bewitched.

_Yours was the kiss that awoke my heart  
There lingers still, though we're far apart  
That taste of honey  
Tasting much sweeter than wine_

Clarabella glanced at him every once in a while, wondering how he had found her and what he was doing here. Not that she minded all that much. She had thought he was cute from the start.

_Oh I will return, yes I will return  
I'll come back (She'll come back)  
for the honey (For the honey)  
and you_

Claps and cheers sounded after the song and that seemed to snap Max from his trance. As Clarabella walked off the stage, he looked around as if he didn't know where he was. Sadie took this opportunity to ask what she had wanted before.

"How do you know her?" she wondered, cutting to the chase. Max looked at her, his eyes still wide and filled with disbelief.

"What?" he grunted and Lucy couldn't help but snicker.

"How do you know that girl up there?" Jude wondered as well. "You said her name when ye saw her, didn't ye?"

"Oh," Max choked then cleared his throat and shifted to sit properly at the table. "I, uh, I gave her a ride today. She was one of my fares."

"You looked like you were pretty into her, man," Prudence observed, bluntly, and Max coughed on the swig of beer he'd just taken. He coughed as Prudence, Jude and Lucy started busting up and he glared at them through red eyes.

"Hey, guys."

They all looked up to see Clarabella smiling at Sadie and Max immediately hid his face by tilting his hat forward.

"Clarabella!" Sadie grinned and she and JoJo scooted out of the booth so the girls could hug. "You were fantastic up there!"

"Yeah, real groovy," Prudence added with a huge smile.

"Aw, thanks," Clarabella smiled and looked around at the group, noticing Max trying to hide his face, but she ignored it. "So, who'd you bring with you, Sadie?"

"Oh, well, you've met JoJo and Prudence," Sadie began and Clarabella nodded, shaking their hands again. "This is Jude and Lucy."

"Oh, so _you're_ the one that came up with that awesome logo for Sadie, huh?" she smiled, shaking Jude's hand.

"Yeah, well it's not that awesome," he shrugged modestly. Clarabella shook hands with Lucy and turned to Max who was still trying to hide his face.

"Max," Lucy muttered at the corner of her mouth and elbowing him gently. "Where are your manners?"

"I left them in the cab with my pride," Max muttered back. Lucy elbowed him hard in the ribs and he groaned in pain, sitting up and she grabbed his hat to reveal his face as he glared at her.

"Oh, hi," Clarabella smiled sweetly, trying to ignore what had just happened. "Max, right? I knew we'd see each other again."

Max looked up at her in astonishment as she held her hand out for him to shake. He glanced between her face and her hand, as if he didn't know what to do. Finally he took it and her smile widened slightly.

"_Why do I always feel like I'm lost when I see her?_" he wondered to himself.

"Well, now that we're all acquainted, how about another round of drinks?" Sadie wondered, calling the waitress over. Clarabella tried to scoot in with the group, but they hardly had any room.

"Here," Prudence smiled, standing and gesturing that Clarabella sit where she had been. Max looked at them, terrified as Prudence walked toward JoJo to sit on his knee as he sat on the other end of the booth.

"Thanks, Prudence," Clarabella smiled and slid into the booth next to Max. He stared at her, his ice blue eyes examining her as she slid a bit closer to him. She looked up at him with a smile and shrugged cutely, then faced the group. He looked at Jude and his friend only stifled snickers at Max's behavior. Max stuck his tongue out at Jude as the waitress brought more drinks.

Max still sipped at his first beer. He didn't want to drive drunk with all his friends in the cab. Clarabella only had one drink and the rest were getting hammered. Clarabella leaned toward Max suddenly, making him freeze.

"I saw you from up there," she whispered and his eyes shifted.

"You did?" he replied, and she only nodded.

"I could never forget a face like yours," she murmured and Max looked at her in shock. She only smirked and his shock melted into charm.

"Oh _really_," he smirked, leaning an elbow on the table and facing her. "And what kind of face is mine?"

"Long-haired and scruffy," she grinned and Max straightened with a pout as he took a drink of his beer and she only giggled. "Oh, don't be mad. To tell you the truth, it was nice, you pointing out all the things you like about Penny Lane."

Max groaned and let his head fall into his hand as he shook it then picked it back up and said, "That was…the stupidest thing I've ever done."

"No," Clarabella protested. "It was nice." She leaned in a little closer to his ear. "Actually, you're kinda cute."

Max froze when she said that. He knew how to talk to and be with a girl, but this one made him uneasy. She threw him for a loop because whenever he even saw her, it seemed, he was at a loss for words. It scared him, if he was being completely honest about it.

"You think so?" he sputtered as he looked at her and she nodded slowly.

"When you take these guys home, I could follow you and we could hang out at your place for a while," she murmured, inching closer to him. "What do you say?"

"Uh, w-well," Max sputtered. "See, Sadie, JoJo and Prudence all live together and I live with them, so…don't you think it's gonna be kinda weird?"

"Why?" she shrugged. "You can have people over, right?"

"Well, yeah…but---"

"You have your own _room_, right?" she wondered. Max had to get out of this. The thought of him and this girl together was certainly tempting, but he couldn't deal with this right now. She scared him!

"_Do something, you idiot!_" he screamed at himself. "_Tell her you were in the war! She's sure to back down if you tell her it left you crazy!_"

"Did I tell you I was in the army?" he blurted and she stared at him with wide eyes.

"Really?" she breathed and Max let out a subtle sigh of relief.

"Yeah," he replied, rather sadly. "I was stationed in Vietnam."

Clarabella sat back a bit. He was a war veteran. No doubt he had some mental problems because of it. Who wouldn't?

"Really?" she asked, a little more cautious. Max nodded.

"It was really…_really_ bad," he recalled, staring into his beer bottle. "I saw my friends get shot down. I was always running for my life. The bombs were murder on my ears and we had to be in everything from mud, and water…it was horrible." He continued to stare into his bottle as Clarabella stared at him. "Sometimes I have nightmares about being there again. I wake up in a cold sweat, trembling all over. I'd never been so afraid as I was in Nam."

Clarabella stared at him for a moment then sat forward a bit. She gently took his face into her hands and turned his face to hers, making him frown in confusion. Without a word she pressed her lips gently to his and Max's eyes shot wide in surprise.

"_Well, that backfired on you, didn't it?_" he thought to himself. He suddenly found himself melting into the kiss and his eyes closed as she continued kissing him and his arms slid around her. They sat like that for a moment before they both pulled away and looked into each other's eyes.

"I guarantee," she whispered, "you won't have nightmares tonight while you're with me." She planted her lips to his again before he could speak. He decided, maybe this wasn't such a bad idea.

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**A/N: **I love this song! did u like the way i snuck in "Hard Day's Night"? anywho, it didn't seem 2 obvious that Clarabella was a singer, did it? and if it did, oh well...lol! reviews?


	3. Love Me Do

_**Chapter 3: Love Me Do**_

Max stirred in his bed and turned onto his side. His eyes opened and shut tiredly again, but they shot open again when he saw who was lying next to him. Clarabella groaned and shifted, her eyes still shut and her hair sprawled out behind her on the pillow. She moved closer to Max who lifted himself up on his elbow to look at her in shock.

"I thought it was a dream," he admitted, softly. As he gazed down at her while she slept he couldn't help but smile. "I'm glad it wasn't."

He lay down again and pulled her into his arms, touching his forehead to hers, still smiling. She stirred and her eyes fluttered open to see Max smiling at her. She smiled back and stretched, shifting onto her back, his arms still around her.

"Hi," she smiled.

"Good day, sunshine," Max smiled back. She turned onto her side again and snuggled up against his chest as he pulled his arms around her a little tighter.

"I'm glad I finally broke you," she giggled.

"I'm not surprised you did, though," Max chuckled. "It's not real hard to get me in bed."

"You slut," Clarabella smiled, shifting to lie on his chest and she kissed his lips tenderly.

"Yeah, I am," he shrugged and she laughed a little more.

"What time is it?" she wondered and looked at the watch on Max's left wrist. Her eyes shot open wide as she gasped. "Oh, my God! I have to go!"

Max frowned as she shot out of the bed, taking one of the sheets with her and looking for her clothes.

"What's wrong?" Max wondered as he sat up.

"I gotta get home or he's gonna kill me!" Clarabella replied, still looking for her clothes.

"He?" Max echoed, his frown deepening. He slid off the bed and pulled on his pants as Clarabella smiled, and sat next to him on the bed.

"My father," she replied, quickly kissing him on the cheek and starting to get dressed. "I live with him for now. These singings gigs are just to pay the rent."

"He makes you pay rent?" he wondered with a relieved smirk.

"Yeah," she groaned. "It's his way of preparing me for the real world. If he'll ever let me go to find my own place."

Max frowned then snapped his fingers with a bright smile. Clarabella pulled on one of her shoes and frowned at him in wonder.

"Why don't you stay here?" he asked and Clarabella giggled.

"I don't think you want me to do that," she smiled, pulling on her other shoe.

"Sure I do," he smiled, shifting to face her completely. "Sadie won't mind, I'm sure."

"Oh, come on, Max," she laughed, fixing her hair. "We just met and you're asking me to stay with you?!"

"Come on, babe," he murmured, scooting closer and pulling his hands around her waist. "You know Sadie and you know me _very_ well now…" Clarabella giggled. "…just stay here, please?"

"Why?" she asked. "Why do you want me to live with you? So you can take me whenever you want?"

"No," Max replied. "That's a plus." He nuzzled his face against her cheek and she giggled.

"Then why?" she smiled, placing her arms around his neck with a smile on her lips.

"Because you're pretty," he smiled. "And…" He trailed off, not really knowing why he wanted her to stay with him. He'd just met her, as she pointed out, but he wanted her with him for some deep reason he couldn't identify.

"And…?" Clarabella urged, snapping Max from his thoughts. He smiled and slid off the bed to kneel in front of her, suddenly knowing how to keep her there.

"Because," he began, taking her hands. "I love you."

"Ok, I didn't realize how insane you were when I met you," she laughed, standing, but Max still held her hands. She looked down at him with wide eyes and leaned toward his face. "You're one of those obsessives, aren't you?"

"No," Max replied, shaking his head and she stood tall again.

"Then why are you being…crazy?!" she asked.

"You can't tell me that last night wasn't the best you've ever had," Max smirked, standing. "It was the best _I've_ had."

"Even so," Clarabella admitted, pulling her hands away and heading to the bed to look for her handbag. "I don't think it would be a good idea. Besides, my dad would never let me live with a boy." She found her bag and picked it up then headed for the door. "Especially if he _met_ you."

Max gently gripped her arm before she passed him and she stopped, looking at him.

"I'm not a boy," he smirked. "And what do you mean?"

"Well," she began, casting her eyes down and regretting she said that. "See, my dad likes the clean cut, Princeton type."

"Perfect," Max smiled, opening his arms and presenting himself. "I went to Princeton!"

"Really?" she smiled then shook the thought from her head. "No. It's not a good idea."

"Why not?" he urged and pulled her back when she tried walking out the door. "I love you."

"You're crazy," she insisted, shaking her head. She stepped toward the door again but he darted in front of her.

_Love, love me do  
__You know I love you  
I'll always be true  
So please, love me do  
Whoa, love me do_

She rolled her eyes but couldn't help smiling, still trying to get to the door. He darted in front of her again.

_Love, love me do  
You know I love you  
I'll always be true  
So please, love me do  
Whoa, love me do_

"You're crazier than I thought," she chuckled, and finally found an out to hurry out the door. Max followed her toward the door and pulled her to face him.

_Someone to love  
Somebody new  
Someone to love  
Someone like you_

He pulled her in for a kiss but she shook her head and tried to head for the door. Max was insistent as he darted in front of her again. They were both almost to the door.

_Love, love me do  
You know I love you  
I'll always be true  
So please, love me do  
Whoa, love me do_

He backed up against the door, placing his hands on either side of the frame. Clarabella stepped directly in front of him, closing in on his face.

_Love, love me do  
You know I love you  
I'll always be true  
So please, love me do  
Whoa, love me do  
Yeah, love me do  
Whoa, oh, love me do_

Max lowered his hands and slid them around Clarabella's waist as she smiled seductively at him.

"Stay here," he murmured. "Please."

Clarabella narrowed her eyes at him, the smile still on her lips and slid her hands to his bare arms then up and around his neck.

"I'll see what I can do," she finally murmured and Max's face lit up. He pulled her closer and planted his lips to hers, but she pushed him back. "But you have to ask Sadie, alright?"

"Absolutely," he nodded. "I'll ask her when she gets up. She'll want you here since you guys are such good friends."

"Well, I dunno, but ok," she replied and stepped toward the door and out of his arms. She opened the door then realized something and turned to him again. "Would you mind driving me home? It's too far to walk."

"Sure," Max scoffed. "Anything for you, sunshine."

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**A/N:** ok, i was in doubt about this, so i wouldn't be surprised if you tell me Max was out of character, honestly. but please tell me anyway. reviews?


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